WHO’S LEADING GDFL WHITLEY MEDAL?
BELL Post Hill star forward Jayden Ettridge is daring to believe the Whitley Medal isn’t out of his reach.
It’s feasible to believe Ettridge has as many as 15 votes through eight rounds, but while some of his teammates have already started calling him “Neville” (Whitely), Ettridge believes another power forward might already have one hand on the medal.
“People say it, yeah, but I don’t like it,” he said.
“(Jak) Kennedy-Hunt’s got it in the bag you’d reckon, he’s on track for a massive year. I’ve watched him play and he’s an absolute machine.”
Ettridge’s mates laughed after reading one Geelong Advertiser journalist had selected Ettridge for the GDFL’s best-and-fairest medal, but the 23-year-old said he can prove the doubters wrong.
“I didn’t think it (the prediction) was too outrageous, I knew I had it in me,” he said.
“I think the team this year is playing a bit more structured this year.
“And last year, because it was my first year at Bell Post Hill, they didn’t really know where to play me.
“I got played on the wing. I used to play midfield a lot so I was running through the midfield.
“But now I’m just playing permanent forward.”
Ettridge bagged 44 goals in 21 games last season but has already raced to 40 this campaign from just seven matches. And one of those matches was abandoned before halftime because of lightning.
A nine-goal haul against Winchelsea in Round 4 was his career best, before he amassed 13 against Belmont on Saturday.
“That’s my biggest. This year I kicked nine (against Winchelsea), that was my biggest, and now I’ve kicked 13,” he said.
“I swap out of the square with ‘Cozzy’ (Nicholas Costello) and ‘Tarry’ (Justin Tarr), so I either go deep in the square or sit 30m out in front of them and they’re behind me.
“I can take the grabs but I’m not the quickest, I suppose — probably more elusive than quick.
“One game I did get towelled though, against Bannockburn. I barely got a kick.”
It’s against the better teams that Ettridge still wants to prove himself.
“Inverleigh in a couple of weeks, hopefully I can kick a few then, and I think we play Bannockburn as well, so I’ve got a chance to redeem myself against them,” he said.
“We started the season slow but I reckon we’re building into it nicely.
“It’s a lot more structured this year with Brad Martin as coach. I think we’re playing better footy than last year. The structures this year are going perfect.”
Ettridge also rated Bannockburn midfielder Jack Brauman a huge chance for this year’s Whitley Medal.